Bound by String, Fate, and Love
by AngelOfFluffiness
Summary: Its almost Christmas and Conan has some shopping to complete. He finally finishes but not before a blizzard traps him in the mall. Now fatigued and forlorn, Conan is without Rachel. Or is he? Perhaps a bracelet set has them bound by fate after all.


Hey guys, I'm just in time to post this. Happy Holidays everyone! Disclaimer: I do not own Case Closed/Detective Conan

I use the English names and I forbid complaints! Don't forget to review it!

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**Bound by Fate, String, and Love**

Rachel yawned as she woke up and quickly grabbed her cell phone to see if Jimmy texted her back yet. After all, Christmas was really close by and she wanted to be able to give him the special bracelet she'd made him. She found a text from him, but he said he wasn't going to make it to see her for Christmas. Sighing sadly, Rachel sent him a new text;

'Jimmy...please come home soon. I wish you well...Happy Holidays...'

She sent it and heard Conan wake up in the room across from hers about five minutes later. At the exact same time, Jimmy texted back

'Merry Christmas Rachel. I miss you and I'm really sorry. But thanks for waking me, my alarm didn't go off. I have a case to get to, so I'll talk to you later.'

He didn't really, unless Richard got a call, but his cover was this huge case out of town. Conan sighed and accidentally bumped into Rachel's door on his way to the bathroom.

"Ow," he moaned softly.

"Conan, are you alright?" asked Rachel.

"I'm okay!" he called.

Conan walked down the hall and spotted Richard passed out drunk in his office.

"Too much egg nog and beer for the old man again. I wonder if he bought any non-alcoholic egg nog for Rachel and I," Conan sighed.

He made it to the bathroom and grumpily brushed his teeth. The mirror reflected a smart kid with fake glasses, short brown hair in a unique cut, and blue eyes. He removed his glasses and fixed the bent frames.

"Stupid door," he muttered, as he finished up in the bathroom.

"Conan! Come here, I want to give you something!" Rachel called.

He wondered to Rachel's room and opened the door.

"Hai Rachel, what's up?"

She lifted his arm gently and put a gold, red, and green braided string around his wrist, pulling an end through a loop at the end to close the bracelet. There was a half of a heart charm on it and Rachel showed her wrist to reveal the same bracelet with the other half of the heart. Conan couldn't help but smile at the pretty bracelet Rachel had made herself.

"A friendship bracelet! It's so cool Rachel!"

"Thanks! I was going to give it to Jimmy, but I won't be seeing him this year for Christmas. It's said that the bracelets keep the wearers tied together," Rachel explained.

"Metamorphically I hope," Conan laughed.

"Of course," Rachel giggled, "Merry Christmas Conan!"

Conan smiled wanly, "Thanks Rachel, Merry Christmas. After breakfast, I'll be going out for awhile, okay?"

"Well, don't get hurt or lost, okay?"

Rachel served some rice for breakfast and tried to wake Richard, to no avail. She sighed as she returned.

"He's out cold, let's just eat and then I'm going out with Serena, so would you want to come with us?"

"Nah Rachel, I'll be fine. Besides, I can't go with you because you'll see your Christmas present!" he laughed, " I'll call you if I need to okay?"

"You better," she emphasized.

Conan nodded and finished his breakfast. He went to change and put on his winter gear.

He got his wallet and called back to Rachel;

"Bye Rachel! See you later!"

"Bye Conan! Be home for lunch!"

"I will!"

Conan was out, getting ready to do what he really hated-shopping. He had to get tow gifts for Rachel, one to give as Conan, one to leave as Jimmy. Plus Amy, Mitch, and George had to be shopped for, but they were easy. Two packs of Masked Yaiba trading cards for each and they were fine. His mom, dad, and his neighbor, Agasa, had been shopped for already. It was just Amy, Mitch, George, and Rachel to shop for now. It was going to be a long time until lunch and in this bitter cold, Conan was going to be lucky if he didn't come home sick.

Conan ran to a trading card shop and purchased six packs of Yaiba cards. He headed to a nearby comic store and purchase three of the new Yaiba comic book. It wasn't as expensive as it sounded and because of his parents, Conan had a good amount to spend. With that, Any, Mitch, and George were done. Now it was time for the big one-Rachel's gifts.

_Now what do I buy Rachel? Conan asked himself._

Theres only one really great place to shop for a woman and that was...the mall. Conan quickly realized he was going to have to go to the mall.

"Nice," he moaned, but he knew it'd be worth it.

He'd been to the mall as Jimmy, but not yet as Conan. He hadn't been there as a really young kid period. Determined, Conan began walking to the mall. Staring at the sky, he saw snow beginning to fall. The dark sky proved it was going to get worse, so Conan hurried for the mall's cover. Just as he got there though, he ran into Amy, George, and Mitch. He quickly hid the bag behind his bag.

"Hey Conan, what's in the bag?" yelled George

_Your brain, duh, Conan thought to himself._

"Your guys' Christmas presents," answered Conan, bringing the arm with his bracelet behind his head as he laughed.

"Yay!" cried Amy.

"Cool!" Mitch and George exclaimed.

"Hey Conan, where'd you get the pretty bracelet?" asked Amy.

Conan looked at the bracelet again and smiled, a blush taking his cheeks.

"Someone very, very special to me made it for me. I've got to run you guys, see you later!"

Conan ran toward the now visible mall, but he tripped and landed in a pile of snow.. Cold and determined, he gathered the Yaiba bag, his glasses, and his dignity as he finally got to his destination. The snow became heavier and his watch showed that it was only 11 in the morning. Which gave him two to three hours. In the mall? He had no chance!

_I better call Rachel, Conan realized, seeing a time shortage._

He dialed his cell phone for Rachel's number. The rings were annoyances to his cold ears.

"Hai Conan?"

"Rachel, I'm at the mall right now. I don't know if I'll make it home for lunch."

"Well Serena is dragging me all over town, so I might not either. I may see you there. Hey, Serena is yelling for me so just be careful and I'll call Dad to tell him we won't make it home, okay?"

"Okay, see you later Rachel."

"Bye Conan, thanks for calling."

He hung up and entered the huge mall. He hoped this would be quick, but he knew it wouldn't be quick at all. Even as Conan, he had to get Rachel the best he could get her. Even if getting the best for her meant going through a mall.

"Kid, are you okay? You want me to use the blower to get some of that cold snow off of you?" asked a worker.

"I'm okay, thanks," answered Conan, shaking himself off carefully.

Conan walked on in and nearly screamed. No wonder little kids always get lost in the mall! The wind howled outside and a bad feeling came over Conan. Sighing and praying for Rachel as he touched his bracelet, Conan began to search for two gifts. Seconds became minutes and minutes became hours. At about one in the afternoon, Conan wanted to scream. He was surviving on free samples and determination and had found an adorable Christmas angel statue type item to give as Jimmy. As much as he had looked however, the forlorn detective could not find the right item to give as Conan. Usually, he had the opposite issue with finding items to give her for Christmas, Valentines, Easter, and her birthday.

Suddenly, he found it, the perfect gift from Conan. A pretty tree ornament which was a glass heart with a mother and child painted on it. It was in an ordinary child's price rang and he knew she'd love it. He bought it and prepared to leave with Rachel's gifts and the Junior Detective League's gifts. Unfortunately for Conan, the power went out, just as he reached the snow blocked door. Screams erupted as people panicked. A huge blizzard whirled around outside, the very reason that Conan or anyone else in the mall were not going anywhere.

"Oh no," groaned Conan.

"Attention shoppers, attention shoppers! We are snowed in, we are snowed in!" blared the intercom.

"Nah, really?" asked Conan with much sarcasm "I thought the mall just randomly floated up to a cloud."

The loudspeaker went on "Please wait with us while we are waiting to be dug out. The city is on a level 3 snow emergency. This matter should be resolved within a few hours! Sorry for any inconvenience."

Groans resonated throughout the mall and Conan's was one of them.

"Great, I've already been here for two hours," sulked Conan grumpily

Then he heard her voice. The voice of whom he had just spent two hours in this mall for.

"Don't blame me! It's not my fault we are snowed in! Besides, your little mini boyfriend can care for himself!"

"He's not my mini boyfriend Serena! It was your idea to come here!"

"Whatever Rachel. Quit freaking out, guys hate that."

Serena and Rachel! They were here! But where? He couldn't see them. Fatigue began hitting Conan, but he fought it. He had to find her and fast but their voices sounded so far away. He checked to see if he had a cell phone signal, no dice. He stared at that bracelet and laughed to himself

_Hey bracelet, where's Rachel? Conan asked, then laughed inwardly at his joke._

Finally, Conan charged into the idle crowd to search for Rachel, while fighting fatigue. He knew he couldn't chase her too long.

"Rachel! Rachel!" he cried.

"Did you hear something Serena?"

"Rachel, we're in a mall of upset people. We're hearing a lot of things!"

"No, I mean...I feel like someone's calling my name."

"Yeah...me!" called Conan, gasping for some air.

He still couldn't see either of the girls.

"Like who?"

"Well, maybe Conan...:"

Conan ran left, in the direction of her ever closer, yet so far away, voice.

"Please, little kids can't stand the mall for much more than an hour."

"How would you know?" Rachel and Conan asked simultaneously.

Then he saw her. The tall karate black belt with her long, brown hair, and her deep blue eyes. She stood with rich girl, Serena Sebastian, who had short blond hair above shoulder and could be quite a pain sometimes.

"Rachel! Rachel! Oh gosh...Rach..Rachel," Conan panted as fatigue began setting in.

This time, she turned to find the small, shrunken, forlorn, detective running slowly to her with three paper bags from three stores. His clothes were damp from melted snowflakes and a little sweat. Conan was worn out and couldn't be any happier to see Rachel.

"Conan! Oh Conan, you poor thing!"

"I don't believe it!"

He held up his arm with the bracelet as he reached her.

"It worked Rachel," he moaned innocently "plus I got all my Christmas shopping done. I even stopped by Agasa's to...to get Jimmy's present for you. It's in one of those bags."

Rachel picked Conan up and handed Serena the bags. He coughed carefully and yawned.

"Did you fall or something?"

_No Serena, a whale flew out of the snow and sprayed me with water, Conan thought._

"Yeah," he admitted, resting his head on the front side of Rachel's shoulder.

"You poor little thing. I bet you have a cold and everything!" exclaimed Rachel.

"I'm okay...because you're here..." he sighed, falling asleep.

Rachel brushed a happy tear from her eye and Serena smiled.

Somewhere, deep in the mall, jingle bells rang as the charms on the bracelets connected in passing.


End file.
